US territory
How to become a teacher in Virgin Islands
Steps drawn from the state's data
- Earn a bachelor's degree. At least one initial credential requires one.
- Complete clinical experience such as student teaching.
- Pass the tests the state requires (Title II reports that tests are required, not which ones).
- Complete a background check or fingerprinting.
- Apply to Department of Education for an initial credential, such as Professional Educator Class I Certificate; Vocational Education Certificate.
- Career changers can use one of 2 alternative routes instead of a traditional program.
Teacher preparation providers in Virgin Islands
| Provider | Program types | Enrollment | Completers |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of the Virgin Islands | Traditional | 157 | 8 |
About teacher preparation in Virgin Islands
INTRODUCTION
The Virgin Islands Department of Education (VIDE) continues to reform policies, procedures, and practices that enhance our students' academic achievement. Focus has been maintained on improved recruitment and retention of highly qualified teachers, strategizing for aligning teacher performance standards with academic content standards and certification requirements.
This report is essential to us as we engage in the continuous improvement process relative to our educational professionals and the Department of Education overall. Our initiatives are supported and endorsed by the Virgin Islands Board of Education (VIBE), the Virgin Islands Department of Labor (VIDOL), the University of the Virgin Islands (UVI), and the Office of the Governor of the United States Virgin Islands. Such support represents a collaboration of authority and expertise that will provide pivotal resources to ensure the success of each program associated with this report.
Educational Leadership and Public Schools
The responsibility for public education in the USVI is vested simultaneously in the Department of Education (VIDE), the executive agency established by statute, and in the Virgin Islands Board of Education (VIBE), established as an independent agency whose nine members are elected for four-year terms. Both entities are entrusted with the broad mandate of promoting the cause of education throughout the Territory.
The VIDE is headed by the Commissioner of Education, appointed by the Governor of the Virgin Islands, with the advice and consent of the Legislature of the Virgin Islands. The Governor also appoints many others who work in the USVI’s public education sector, including two Insular Superintendents. The Commissioner supervises and directs the affairs of the Department according to statutory authority and is also consistent with policy mandates enacted by the VIBE. The VIBE is specifically charged with the responsibility of establishing criteria for the certification of education professionals within the VIDE. Additional information about the VIDE can be found at http://www.vide.vi.
Academic content and student academic achievement standards, assessments, and the territorial accountability system are adopted and implemented upon approval by the Commissioner’s Accountability, Standards, and Assessment Policy Committee of the U. S. Virgin Islands Department of Education.
Teaching Force
Currently, the VIDE has approximately 859 teachers serving St. Thomas/St. John and St. Croix School Districts. The VIDE recognizes its challenges in ensuring a highly qualified teaching force. In addition to increasing demands for additions to the public-school teaching force, the VIDE faces the prospect of a wave of retirements as large numbers of teachers hired during the "baby boom" years approach retirement age. The Department has also faced large numbers of teachers resigning and relocating to the mainland due to the aftermath of Hurricane Irma and Maria and the closing of the oil refinery. As a result, maintaining teacher quality is, more than ever, a significant issue for the VIDE.
Unique Circumstances
Unique needs and circumstances impacting public education in the USVI include:
1. The absence of a dedicated funding source (such as property taxes) to support education. Public schools in the Territory depend on fluctuating government revenues and must compete with all other government agencies for support.
2. Islands separated by large bodies of water often require the duplication of services, creating additional operating costs.
3. Recruitment and retention of English, Mathematics, Science, Bilingual, Vocational, and Special Education teachers remains challenging. It is difficult to recruit teachers from higher-paying jurisdictions on the U. S. mainland.
4. The presence of only one higher learning institution to address many of the more critical needs of the VIDE.
5. In addition to general recruitment and retention concerns, one of the challenges facing the Department is the recruitment of potential applicants from other areas in the United States, many of whom offer lucrative incentives to teachers.
6. Our most demanding recruitment areas are usually in the core content areas such as Mathematics, Science, Foreign languages, English, and Special Education. Unfortunately, our content area teachers do not usually come from the local University of the Virgin Islands (UVI). UVI graduates many elementary education majors who make up 65% of the Department's elementary teaching force.